Obituaries
his many friends, some of whom he had met at the College. He is survived by his brother Robin, children Lucy and Neil, and grandchildren Holly, Alexa, Bobby and Oliver. Neil contributed significantly to this obituary.
children to a father who was a doctor from Glasgow, and a mother who was a Londoner. Soon after Alec’s birth the family moved to Herne Hill. He initially went to Brightlands and, at the age of 13, he followed his elder brother to the College, where they were both in Grenville. At Dulwich, Alec enjoyed sport, especially cricket, rugby, swimming and playing tennis. He also joined the Officer Training Corps. After leaving Dulwich he went to King’s College London to study Medicine, qualifying in 1939. After completing his house doctor jobs in 1940 he joined the medical division of the RAF Volunteer Reserve, serving until 1946. During the war he was posted to Algeria and Egypt, looking after the health of the Allied armed forces. When he returned to King’s it was to the eye department and he obtained a diploma in ophthalmic medicine and surgery. When the National Health Service was created in 1948 he went into general practice with surgeries in Half Moon Lane, Herne Hill and Old Kent Road, but continued with his eye work as a clinical assistant until retirement. He also worked at the Royal Eye Hospital, which later became part of St Thomas’ Hospital, and saw eye patients at home, as well as holding a children’s clinic in Forest Hill. He retired from the Herne Hill practice in 1986, the one in Old Kent Road having closed several years earlier as the Herne Hill branch expanded. Alec had married Freda in 1941 and together they had three daughters, Judith, Jennifer and Pamela, who all went to James Allen’s Girls’ School. He enjoyed gardening, especially roses, and they once won a cup for the best small garden in Lambeth. He was an active member of Herne Hill Baptist Church, serving as a Sunday school teacher and missionary treasurer there. He was a family man who enjoyed playing tennis, swimming, and clock golf with his daughters. The family also played beach cricket during holidays and Alec was still able to go swimming and play cricket with his great-grandchildren at the age of 97. When Alec retired from the GP practice in Herne Hill, he and Freda moved to Friars Cliff in Dorset. Here they enjoyed being near the sea, which they swam in for many years. Alec played golf and joined Probus. They both became members of Rosebery Park Baptist Church and were actively involved in church life there. They also continued to enjoy gardening and won several prizes at the local horticultural society. In 2006 they moved from their bungalow to a nearby warden- assisted flat in Highcliffe and still enjoyed life there, remaining active for another five years until Freda’s health was failing. She passed away in 2013 after 72 years of marriage. Alec coped reasonably well but he greatly missed her. In November 2014 Alec was diagnosed with secondary cancer and he moved into a nursing home where he died in January 2015. He is survived by his three daughters, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. His eldest daughter Judith Varnham contributed significantly to this obituary.
Dr John Victor Sowton (1945-51) 18.02.1934 – 04.09.2015
John Sowton was born in Bath to Salvation Army officers, who were posted to London shortly afterwards and settled in Herne Hill. John came to the College with an LCC scholarship from Alleyn’s School, following his elder brother, Edgar (41-49), and
they were both in Marlowe. John was a prefect, played 2nd XV rugby and swam for the College in his final year. He also played trumpet in the orchestra. His father died when John was only 14 years old but he was able to discuss with him before he died whether to concentrate on music as a career. His father advised him to enjoy music and choose another career. John was a very good trumpet player but after leaving Dulwich he went to King’s College London to study Medicine, qualifying in 1956, and also playing rugby for King’s College Hospital. He was one of the last doctors to do National Service, when he served with the RAF in St Athan, Glamorgan, and then on Gan, a Maldives Island in the Indian Ocean. After leaving the RAF he did midwifery training at Dulwich Hospital and then became a GP in Redhill, joining as junior partner to doctors Barford, Ogilvie, Lewis and Kelly. He was very happy in general practice, becoming a GP trainer and a Fellow of the Royal College of GPs. He retired from general practice in 1995, at what was then known as the Hawthorns Surgery in Redhill, and worked as a locum for the next five years. John married Anne Grey in 1959, three weeks before his unaccompanied RAF posting to the Maldives, and together they had four children, Tim, Katy, Andrew and Sarah. Tim (71-78) and Andrew (74-80) both came to the College. John played the trumpet for local orchestral and operatic groups, and he and Anne moved to Nutfield Marsh in 1988, where they became increasingly involved in the local community. John became chairman of the local history society and was active in many other local groups and causes, particularly those to do with plans to extract sand from the Nutfield Marsh area. He was devoted to his family and is survived by his children, grandchildren and extended family. Two of his children, Andrew and Sarah, contributed significantly to this obituary.
Dr Alastair Thomas Orr Speirs (1929-33) 13.06.1916 – 13.01.2015
Alastair, known as Alec, was born in Old Kent Road during the First World War, the youngest of four
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